Dental plate.



PATENTED MAY I9, 1903.

S. G. SUPPLEE.

DENTAL PLATE.

APPLIOATION FILED MAR. 21, 1903.

10 MODEL.

WITNESSES:

ATTORNEY UNITED STATES Patented May 19, 1903.

SAMUELG. SUPPLEE, OF NEW YORK, N. Y.

DENTAL PLATE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 728,633, dated May 19,1903.

Application filed March 21, 1903.

' citizen of the United States, residing at New York city, county of NewYork, State of New York, have invented certain new and usefulImprovements in Dental Plates, of which the following. is a full, clear,and exact descripilOIl.

My invention relates to dental plates, and it is my purpose to provide aplate which shall possess the advantages of an all-gold plate inaddition to the advantages of a rubher plate, at the same time producinga construction substantially cheaper than an allgold plate, yet strong,efficient, and durable in every particular. The base-plate is formed ofgold, silver, platinum, or some other suitable or proper material toserve .as the contact or bearing member, which engages with the roof ofthe mouth or palatal surface, as it is termed. To thisacoating ofrubber, celluloid, or other suitable metal of a proper thickness isapplied on the labial surface. The bearing-surface of the plate beingmetallic can be fitted more accurately to the roof of the mouth than canrubber. This is a recognized fact in mechanical dentistry, and in thisrespect metal plates are acknowledged to be superior to rubber plates.

This particular invention is broadly disclosed in my pendingapplication, Serial No. 114,719; but because there are other features inthat application for which broad claims are made, which features may beused independently of the subject-matter of the claims in the presentapplication, I have elected to file this separate application to broadlyprotect the following features of improvement, which may be usedconjointly with the invention of the other application or independentlythereof.

The particular improvement set forth herein comprises providing in acomposite plate in which the base-plate is metal and to which a coatingof rubber is affixed on the lingual surface an exposed airchamber. Thisair-chamber is exposed in the sense that its wall adjacent to the tongueis not covered by rubber or any-other insulating material. As a directresult the thermal qualities of the plate are the same as in an allmetal plate. In other words, the metallic wall is Serial No. 148,832.(No model.)

of heat or cold, which is' a most desirable quality, since it makes thewearer less con- :scious of the presence of the artificial article.

The showing in my former application referred to is sufficient on whichto base the broader' claims hereinafter made, and this application mightproperly be a divisional case, excepting that I have deemed it best toinclude in this application an improvement not disclosed in the formerapplication and for which I desire specific claims.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a perspective View of the base-plateconstructed so as to embodyimy invention and with a fragment of therubber coating shown thereon. Fig. 2 is a section on the line 2 2,Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a similar view of a modification.

1 is a base-plate shaped to fit accurately to the roof of the mouth ofany particular wearer. 2 is an air-chamber provided in said plate 1. Inthe particular form shown I have provided the under side of thebase-plate 1 with the reticulated or cellular surface 3, described andclaimed in my other application referred to. The purpose of thereticulations or cells is to provide a secure anchorage for the rubbercoating which is applied to the labial and buccal surfaces of saidbase-' plate.

5 represents the rubber coating, and 6 6 represent artificial teeth.

The air-chamber 2-is formed by depressing that part of the base-plate 1wherein it is desired to locate the air-chamber.

4 is a metal plate, preferably made of the same material as thebase-plate 1 and united directly with the lower wall of the air-chamher.This may be effected by soldering or by any other approved method bywhich the plate 4 is permanently and directly united to thebase-plate 1. As shown in Fig. 1, this plate is slightly larger than thedimensions of the air-chamber, so as to overstand the same at the edgeand form a recess or cavity into which the rubber coating 5 projects, soas to firmly anchor the same adjacent to the edge of the plate 4. Thisrubber coating may also overstand the plate 4'slightly at the edge toform a smooth and substantially flush surface therewith, so that thewearer Will not be conscious of any unevenness or bulge on the lowerside of said plate, as would otherwise be the case. I prefer toconstruct the plate as shown in Fig. 3, in which the base-plate 1corresponds substantially to the base-plate 1 in Figs. 1 and 2,exceptiugthat the central part of the air-chamher is'perforated or cut away. Inthis case I substitute in place of the plate 4 athicker plate 4*, whichmay be soldered or otherwise permanently united to the plate 1. Theplate 4* may be made thicker than the plate 4, so as to give the desiredstrength. The single plate is preferable to the double plate for severalreasons. For example, it is stronger, and it eliminates the spacebetween the plates which might occur and to a certain degree impair thestrength and thermal qualities of the plate. While I prefer in this caseto employ my invention in conjunction with the base-plate having thesmooth and imperferate bearing-surface and the reticulated or cellularlower surface, it is not necessary that a base plate so constructed beemployed. In other Words, this invention does not depend upon aparticular form of metal base-plate. That invention is fully covered andprotected in my former application by itself and in combination withthis invention.

In this application, however, I seek to claim the following:

1. In a dental plate, a metallic base-plate, an air-chamber therein, acoating of rubber on the lingual surface of said plate adjacent to theedge of the air-chamber, the metallic wall thereof being uncovered andexposed on both sides.

2. In a dental plate, a base-plate, an airchamber therein, the wall ofsaid air-chamber on the lingual side overhanging the main body of thebase-plate, a coating of rubber on the lingual side of the plateadjacent to said air-chamber and extending under the overhanging edgethereof, the metal wall of said air-chamber being uncovered and exposedon both sides,

3. In a dental plate, a metallic base-plate, an air-chamber therein, aseparate sheet of metal secured thereto on the labial surface andextending slightly beyond the edge of the air-chamber on the lingualside and forming a recess at the edge of said air-chamber on saidlingual side, a coating of rubber in said lingual side of saidbase-plate, said rubber extending into said recess.

4. In a dental plate, a metallic base-plate, an air-chamber therein, aseparate sheet of metal of greater thickness than the thickness of thebase-plate being permanently secured on the labial surface of saidbase-plate, the metal of the base-plate proper being perforated or cutaway above said separate sheet of metal excepting at the edges thereof,the edge of the separate sheet of metal extending beyond the edge of theair-chamber on the lingual side and forming a recess, a coating ofrubber on said lingual side of said base-plate, said rubber extendinginto said recess.

SAMUEL G. SUPPLEE.

Witnesses:

R. O. MITCHELL, L. VREELAND.

